Savannah Marshall admits to 'inevitable' rematch with Claressa Shields

Hartlepool’s Marshall made boxing history last month when she headlined a sold-out O2 Arena in London alongside Shields as the pair produced a classic on what was the first ever all-female card in the UK. Marshall and Shields went blow-for-blow in 10 pulsating rounds before the American would be crowned winner via unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards to claim the undisputed middleweight title and become the inaugural holder of the WBC Elizabethan belt.

Despite her loss, Marshall made the town of Hartlepool proud in her performance and even earned the plaudits of her long-time rival Shields who described Marshall as ‘great’ on a ‘phenomenal night’ for women’s boxing. Marshall and Shields’ rivalry dates back over a decade to the 2012 World Championships where Marshall inflicted what is still the only defeat on a storied CV for the 27-year-old American.

And with Shields having already hinted that she would be open to a rematch with Marshall, Stateside, with the scores tied at one each between the pair, Marshall has now had her say on the matter in her first interview since the fight.

“You could say it was 1-1. I think, forgetting the scores and the judges, that was a close fight and many of the rounds could have went either way and I know she knows that it was close,” Marshall revealed exclusively to Sky Sports.

“I think it’s a massive possibility [there will be a rematch]. There isn’t that many girls out there. I know Claressa goes the weight below and there’s a couple of girls there so we’ve both got other options but, inevitably, our paths will cross again because we are the only two really elite at middleweight.”

Marshall added: “Claressa is a brilliant fighter. All of her accolades speak for themselves.

“She’s very smart. Her head movement and reactions were really good. There was a couple of times I had her hurt, but it’s all about that one shot and I wasn’t able to land it.”

And having not been able to land that one devastating shot which had seen Marshall claim 10 knockout victories heading into her legacy fight with Shields, the Hartlepool fighter admits there will be certain things she will address should the rematch take place.

“I think there’s quite a few changes I could make. There was things that maybe I shouldn’t have done for as long as I did, so just tweaks,” said the 31-year-old.

“But we’ve both shared the ring now as pros and I got the best Claressa Shields there is, or there’s ever going to be, and she didn’t hurt me. Whether or not she’d say that about me, she probably wouldn’t, but I can take that away [from the fight].

“I know there’s no way she can hurt me, so going into the rematch thinking that is a card to keep.”